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Pinterest Inspiration | Neutrals

While looking through Pinterest this week, I was drawn to this photo immediately. At first, it felt a bit boring to me and I wasn’t sure why I was drawn to it.

However, the more I looked at it, the more I liked it. There is an understated elegance to it that comes from the layering of neutrals. This beautiful locker is centered perfectly in the middle of the photo and the accents only complement the symmetry of the entire photo. Built of oak and stained with a weathered finish, the locker is solid and grounds the photo. And the different neutrals of the locker and the hardware lend a simple elegance to the entire photo.

This is a beautiful photo and does a great job of marketing this hallway locker for Restoration Hardware. As a scrapbooker, I decided to use it as an inspiration for a layout built on a neutral palette.

Just as there are layers of neutral items in the inspiration photo, I wanted to build my layout on layers of neutral paper. I started by framing the page with a piece of kraft cardstock and then added a trimmed piece of floral kraft paper on top of the cardstock. Because the photos also contain florals, I didn’t want them to blend into the background so I added yet another layer of patterned kraft paper – this time a kraft paper with a weathered-grid pattern. I trimmed yet another piece of neutral paper to ground the journaling and added a few fabric flowers to the edge of the photos. I finished the layout by adding a metal photo turn and a slightly-darker title – similar to the hues found in the hardware in the inspiration photo.

I had a lot of fun playing with a completely neutral color palette and love the simple elegance that it adds to the feel of the layout. I hope that you are inspired by this photo, too. Let me know where you find inspiration and maybe I’ll use it in a future column. You can also follow my Pinterest boards here.

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About Stephanie Vetne

Stephanie Vetne has been scrapbooking for over eight years. She’s a photographer and a former legal-writing professor and editor. Steph has been on the creative team at DesignerDigitals.com for the past five years and writes a monthly All About Me column for DesignerDigitals.com’s blog. She’s designed for many other scrapbooking companies, has contributed to several idea books, and her layouts have been published in nearly every major scrapbooking magazine. Steph writes a blog called Steph’s Stuff where you can read all about her daily adventures with her three kids, her grammar-obsessed husband, and her crazy golden retriever.

8 Responses to Pinterest Inspiration | Neutrals

Such a beautiful page, Stephanie. The layers of neutrals are simply stunning and your journaling is great. After growing up in the Flower City, known for its lilacs, I can smell their sweet fragrant scent.

Really lovely layout, Stephanie! I love designing with a range of neutrals in layouts and in my home as well. They are so elegant and peaceful. The key to keeping it interesting is all the layers and multiple textures. I don’t think anyone designs better digital neutrals than Katie Pertiet so I was not surprised to see her supplies credited. Thanks for sharing your inspiration and your memory.

Oh Stephanie, this is gorgeous! I love the neutrals. One of my favorite memories of home is lilacs. I was raised by my grandparents and they had 4 lilac bushes. Two white and one lavender. They are still my favorite flower. And my grandkids call me Mimi! Thanks for sharing!

Wow, you totally made that work using the neutrals. Amazing but soft
layout. Love the story about the lilacs also!! I absolutely love the smell of
them so can identify with having them throughout your kitchen, living room,,
or wherever you spend the most amount of time!